The Writing Process
And my attempts to make an impact through my work
I’ve been writing now for nearly 3 years, and even though I have had breaks and struggled to find my voice on some issues, I feel like I have gradually improved as a writer, both in combining personal experience with certain topics and with my structure and flow present in each article.
Over this time, I have never really tried to stick to one topic, and I like to dabble in a scattergun approach, looking at sport, music, and mental health. However, my writing process has always been, for the most part, the same. Here is how I write, and what challenges I face with each new piece.
Where I get inspiration
Now, I’m not saying I am an artist or even a creator, but every person who wishes to express themselves artistically will usually struggle with inspiration. You could have had inspiration for one piece your whole life, but following that up? That is the difficult part. It is why so many sequels fail to live up to the original.
Obviously, I am not a film director or a games developer, but I still need something which inspires me to write. Typically, it is as I fall asleep, or whilst I commute to work, and I try to jot down these thoughts as soon as possible. A lot of the time, it is also due to a personal experience which I feel inclined to speak on, such as some of the pieces I have lined up in future.
It may even be from friends and family. The first article I ever wrote, about my poor time at college, was inspired by my brother’s writing about his job, and him encouraging me to write. Even this article was an idea from a friend who wanted to know what makes my writing what it is. So, inspiration comes from all corners of my life.
Distinguishing my works
One of my biggest issues with writing is differentiating my works. I have a very set way of writing, and if you have written as much as I have, you tend to lose track of what you have written and how you have written prior. I used to check my previous stuff, but I’m so far down the line now, it is an impossible task.
It is similar, I guess, to how a filmmaker must feel. Somebody like Martin Scorsese, for example, has an amazing catalogue, however his subject matter rarely changes, so instead he innovates his films to have similar themes with different storytelling devices. This is what I try to achieve when I do these articles, similar themes but differences being obvious.
But this is easier said than done. My subjects tend to overlap, and it is hard to keep them separate. I may retread issues throughout my works, but I always do this in order to relate and connect these threads together to the larger story I am telling.
My Doubts and Fears
Of course, writing is one of my biggest passions. It has changed over the years, I did and do still like to share my music tastes with people, but I have now reached a point in my writing portfolio where I enjoy sharing my personal experiences with people who I have known and who I am getting to know, as honesty is always the best policy.
I have doubts, sure. From when I started until now, I have always wondered what people think about my works, whether they are considered corny or too revealing, whether people enjoy reading them, and whether it is worth even writing them. I don’t earn money doing this, and it may boost a CV, but all I am doing really is sharing my deepest insecurities with people, who may exploit them in future if we ever did fall out.
When I think of these doubts, I tend to cast them to the back of my mind. Not everything I do will be considered cool, not every article I write will resonate with people, and even if it affects one person for the better, it is worth it.
Why I write
Finally, we come to the key question — what drives my passion to write these articles? This has changed over the 3 years I have done this. I started in the hopes of pursuing it as a side career, earning money to help support me whilst also making a positive difference. As I grow older though, I realise that even if I don’t make profit from this, that is not what I really do it for.
I had a great reminder of the purpose of my writing just the other day. I had somebody who I knew from ages 5–16 pop up to me, for the first time in 7 years. I spent most days with this friend, and being honest, I did not like him. He was in my friend group, sure, but he was very self centred and bossy. He treated the people in our group poorly, and when I left school I was genuinely content with never talking to this person again.
Then, when I was in Spain, they popped up to me on social media. Through my articles, and their own personal journey, they had reflected on how they had been and apologised, which meant a lot to me. I had not thought about this treatment since I left high school, but knowing that my writing had helped somebody to reach out and reconcile with me and to find some form of inner peace, was the greatest feedback I could have ever received.
In a similar vein, a friend’s girlfriend, somebody who I had not spoken to properly since I left university 2 years ago, also popped up to me recently and expressed how a previous article of mine had really resonated with her, that she felt heard by me. I was even recommended a book to help with my own issues expressed in the piece.
This is why I write, to reach those who feel remorse or who feel alone.
